Democratic Erosion University Course Student Blog
Students enrolled in our course are encouraged to write for the course blog, and to read and comment on posts from students at other participating universities. The blog offers students the opportunity to analyze current events through the lens of the theory and case studies they engage with through the course.
The Erosion of an Already Weak Democracy: The Rise and Fall of Jovenel Moïse
Undermining the Feedback Loop: How Trump’s Educational Policies Hinder Democratic Accountability
Democracy Six Feet Under: How Disinformation is Burying Philippine Democracy Alive
Stealth Authoritarianism and Feminist Outcry in Iran
Oct 12, 2022 | SUNY-Binghamton
In mid-September of this year Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman was taken into police custody and died shortly after. The police stated that Mahsa Amini had a heart attack...
U.S. Prisons’ Overcrowding Pandemic Failures
Oct 12, 2022 | SUNY-Binghamton
The issue of prison system failures that stem from pandemic regulations (or lack thereof) is a pervasive one across the globe. While pre-pandemic systems were already...
Erosion of Democracy from Catalonia: Is this the beginning of the end for a democratic solution to the Catalan Crisis? by Cole Kinder @ University of California, Los Angeles
Mar 13, 2018 | University of California, Los Angeles
We like to think of Western European nations and the European Union as entities that uphold the fundamental rights of humanity and democracy. We grow up thinking that in Western Europe, the people...
Poland Democratic Erosion by Trevor Wolff @ University of California, Los Angeles
Mar 13, 2018 | University of California, Los Angeles
In December 2017, Polish president Andrzej Duda, “signed sweeping legislation…to overhaul the country’s judicial system”. This statement alone is an alarming indication of democratic erosion....
Is Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro a Dictator? by Michael Townsend at University of California, Los Angeles
Mar 13, 2018 | University of California, Los Angeles
Nicolas Maduro, who is the President for Venezuela, has been in office since 2013 and took over after Hugo Chavez. Because Maduro continued Chavez’s policies, Venezuela's economy declined with...
The Democratic Tipping Point in Slovakia by Emma Shahabi @ UCLA
Mar 13, 2018 | University of California, Los Angeles
Slovakia has been struggling in recent days to recover some sort of stability following the murders of journalist, Jan Kuciak and his fiancée, Martina Kusnirova. Kuciak was a journalist...
Hungary for Power by Narmeen Mundh @ University of California, Los Angeles
Mar 13, 2018 | University of California, Los Angeles
The issue of democratic backsliding in certain EU countries has been the topic of discussion and increasing concern worldwide. Hungary tops this list due to the rapid introduction and implementation...
A New World Order? How China’s Abolishment of Presidential Term Limits Might Become the Norm for Global Democracy
Mar 13, 2018 | University of California, Los Angeles
In a mostly ceremonial parliamentary vote on Sunday March 11, the National People’s Congress of China voted to allow the abolishment of term limits for President Xi Jinping, allowing him to stay in...
A Streetcar named ‘Democracy:’ An Analysis of Democratic Erosion in Turkey by Sam Wieske @ University of California, Los Angeles
Mar 13, 2018 | University of California, Los Angeles
A few decades ago, Turkey was the poster-boy of a democracy in the Islamic world. Fast forward to present day and Turkey is far from being a paragon of democracy, in light of the recent coup and...
Re-militarizing Japan. Abe’s abuse of overwhelming power by Ippei Kato @ University of California, Los Angeles
Mar 12, 2018 | University of California, Los Angeles
Japan, one of the most peaceful and safest country that has never experienced any configuration after WWⅡ, is facing undemocratic crisis that can change its long-standing neutral position and find...
A Single Referendum in Turkey by Julia Robinson @ University of California, Los Angeles
Mar 12, 2018 | University of California, Los Angeles
The recent referendum passed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Turkey will lead to long term democratic backsliding. The redistribution of power to the executive office, the dissolution of checks...